LATEST ADDITIONS

June 2026 Jazz Record Reviews

Larry Birnbaum, Phil Brett, Thomas Conrad Jun 18, 2026

Michel Petrucciani: Kuumbwa; Tyrone Allen: Upward; Marilyn Crispell/Anders Jormin: Memento; Steve White Trio: Soul Drums; Gregory Hutchinson: Kind of Now: The Pulse of Miles Davis.

Music and Recording Reviews

June 2026 Classical Record Reviews

Jason Victor Serinus, Stephen Francis Vasta Jun 18, 2026

Lutosławski: Concertos for Cello and Orchestra & Bloch: Schelomo, Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello; Luxembourg Philharmonic, Gustavo Gimeno, cond. Steve Reich: The Sextets, The Colin Currie Group. Mahler: Symphony No.5, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra; Sir Donald Runnicles, cond. Schubert: Octet, Scharoun Ensemble Berlin.

Music and Recording Reviews

June 2026 Rock/Pop Record Reviews

Ray Chelstowski Jun 18, 2026

Avalon Emerson: Written into Changes; Rick Vito: Slidemaster; Paul Weller: Weller at the BBC (Vol. 2); Tedeschi Trucks Band: Future Soul.

News

MSB Technology displays a titanic trio of DACs at High End Vienna 2026

Ola Björling Jun 17, 2026

Ola Björling speaks with Frank Vermeylen of MSB Technology Europe about the company's formidable, crafted-in-California DAC lineup that includes the brand-new Palisade, the Cascade, and the Sentinel.

Music and Recording Features

Vinylphyle & Definitive Sound

Robert Baird Jun 17, 2026

Not long ago, the return of vinyl records was still being labeled a fad—a momentary fascination that given the convenience of the digital world would soon fade. Then around 2022, when vinyl outsold CDs for the first time since 1987, minds began to change.

News

Klaudio comes clean at High End Vienna 2026

Ola Björling Jun 16, 2026

Ola Björling speaks with speaks with Isaac Choi of Klaudio at High End Vienna 2026 about the company's new KD-CLN-LP200U ultrasonic record-cleaning machine, in addition to their Magnezar auto-clamping and non-clamping turntables and Tangential tracking tonearm.

My Back Pages

Zen & Quality Audio

Phil Willis Jun 16, 2026

If you had to describe the kind of audio system that you would like to have, with only one word, what word would you choose? Some would choose the word "quality." In a book titled Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values, from 1974, Robert Pirsig considers the word and concept as a fundamental way of thinking about things that encompasses both reason and feelings.

News

Entre Nous: Ideon Audio streams on at High End Vienna 2026

Ola Björling Jun 15, 2026

Ola Björling speaks with George Ligerakis of Ideon Audio at High End Vienna 2026 about the company's new Nous streamer/DAC that features an optional analog preamplifier section.

Audacious Audio Turntable Reviews

BennyAudio Odyssey turntable

Ken Micallef Jun 15, 2026

International audio shows are a white-knuckle thrill ride. The moment I first entered one of the four colossal, cathedral-like "Halles" of High End Munich 2024, my brain short-circuited. Among the products that gripped my senses that weekend, the Brutalist allure of the BennyAudio Odyssey Turntable ($45,000) spoke to me loudest.

ReDiscoveries

ReDiscoveries #14: Real-Life Influencers, Rock'n'Roll Style

Tom Fine Jun 14, 2026

Here's what real influencers do: If you're Carl Perkins, every song on your first LP was covered by Beatles. If you're Muddy Waters, the Rolling Stones named their band after one of your songs.. If you're Chuck Berry, you influenced anyone who has ever considered themselves rock'n'rollers. And if you're Johnny Cash, you were the original Outlaw Country artist, and you invented the country-rock nexus.